Arsenal will hand Granit Xhaka a late fitness test before Saturday’s clash with Huddersfield but Shkodran Mustafi is available. Switzerland international Xhaka is still nursing the groin injury which kept him out of action for last Sunday’s 3-1 loss at Manchester City. He has done some light training this week and so has an outside chance of featuring at the John Smith’s Stadium. Ainsley Maitland-Niles will also undergo a late check by the club’s medical staff although he is expected to be declared fit, having overcome a knee injury this week. If he is cleared to play, Maitland-Niles should get the nod to start at right-back in place of Stephan Lichtsteiner.
Mustafi was a doubt for the encounter with the Premier League’s bottom club after picking up a minor back issue at City but has been declared fit, as has Henrikh Mkhitaryan, who hasn’t played since December due to a foot injury.
Related: Arsenal Hit With Mustafi Injury Ahead Of Watford Clash
Boss Unai Emery has said he also expects captain Laurent Koscielny and top goalscorer Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang to be available despite the pair missing a day of training this week through illness.
Sokratis will sit out again due to an ankle injury which is expected to keep him sidelined for the rest of February while Rob Holding, Hector Bellerin and Danny Welbeck are long-term absentees.
